


The mistletoe next door

by milleandra



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Friends to Lovers, M/M, Mistletoe, would you look at that Levi actually likes Christmas in this fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-24
Updated: 2014-12-24
Packaged: 2018-03-03 06:16:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,652
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2841068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/milleandra/pseuds/milleandra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Levi had many fond memories of Christmas. Smell of cookies, Christmas specials on TV, colorful decorations… It was also surprising how many of these memories were somehow linked to the little boy who appeared in his life as Mikasa’s playmate and ended up worming his way into Levi’s heart.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The mistletoe next door

**Author's Note:**

  * For [setsunah](https://archiveofourown.org/users/setsunah/gifts).



> My Ereri Secret Santa entry for Raryu.  
> Merry Christmas!

Eren 8  
Levi 13

When Levi opened the door, it was his first time seeing Eren.  
He had heard the boy many times before, as he was Mikasa’s playmate and they could spend hours in the made-up pillow fort in the middle of the Ackerman family living room. But Levi wasn’t interested in how his younger sister spends the time, he prefered to stay locked in his own room with his own books.

Levi wouldn’t be able to really see Eren, cause the younger boy was desperately trying to hide behind his mother’s legs, but she seemed pretty determined to push him forward.

"You’re Levi, right?" Eren’s mother smiled at him as he slowly nodded. "I talked to your mother already, Levi. Will you take care of Eren tonight?"

Levi nodded again, taking in the flustered boy. When he was standing right next to his mother, they looked really similar. For a second Levi wondered if the kid inherited his mother’s warm smile.

"Yes, Ms Yeager. We’ll take care of Eren. Good luck with your work." he replied, hoping that his monotonous voice won’t be perceived as rude.

She didn’t seem to be offended as she thanked him and kneeled next to her son, murmuring some assurances and ruffling his hair.

The boy wasn’t as loud as usual. Levi picked up the habit of reading with headphones on, cause the children’s voices were quite audible, even muffled by the closed door. The boy must have felt like he was invading somehow. No wonder, it was a Christmas Eve after all.

Eren’s father was a surgeon in the central hospital and Eren’s mother was working in the same place as a nurse. Levi had no idea what an idiot made a schedule and put the pair on the same shift during Christmas Eve, but the fact remained that Eren was left completely alone during that night. When Mikasa heard about it, she persuaded their mother to let Eren join them for dinner. And she was more than delighted to help the neighbours and keep an eye on their son for tonight. She claimed that Eren was a great companion for her pretty introverted and closed off daughter.

Eren was nothing like the Ackerman siblings. Bubbly, smiling and energetic, their mother was practically beaming whenever the boy was playing at their place. He was nothing like Levi, who was currently staring at the smaller kid, probably intimidating him with his gaze.

Levi sighed. There was nothing he could do about his permanent icy glare, but…

"C’mon kid. You don’t want to spend Christmas in the threshold, right?" Eren shook his head vigorously. "Dinner will be served soon, but if you smile at my mom, she’ll probably give you some gingerbread." the kid’s eyes widened and Levi was astounded by their size and roundness. But Eren was already lowering his head and fumbling with his small rucksack, pulling out a prettily wrapped up bag and giving it to Levi.

"As a token of our gratitude for letting me stay." the boy mumbled the words that were probably a formula his mother made him remember. "I helped during baking." he added, smiling a little when Levi opened the bag and saw a star-shaped cookies, clumsily decorated probably by Eren himself.

Mindful of the watchful eyes, he put a single cookie in his mouth and ruffled the kid’s hair just like his mother did moments before.

'Not bad.' he thought, as he was absentmindedly munching on the treat, the sound of hurried footsteps right behind him.

Eren 9  
Levi 14

The idiot scheduler was probably still working, cause next Christmas Eren was again loitering around Ackerman’s place. Apparently his father was sent to the other city because of the delegation and his mother was working the night shift, sleeping off till late afternoon.

Mikasa went with their mother to the dentist, so that left Levi alone with Eren, spending a lazy morning on the couch and watching all of the Christmas-themed cartoon specials the TV had to offer.

Well, more like Levi watching, cause Eren was nodding off, desperately trying not to use Levi’s arm as a pillow. When Eren’s head started leaning against him again, he sighed, putting hand on his head and ruffling the boy’s unruly hair.

"Why are you so sleepy, Eren? You could have slept in a little, we have Christmas break at school after all." the boy looked up at him sleepily, leaning a little into Levi’s touch. He opened his mouth to speak, but shut it quickly, furrowing brows.

"C’mon, talk to me." he pulled lightly at Eren’s ear. The boy almost squeaked, hiding ears under his palms, but soon dropped his hands, when he’d seen Levi had no intention of pulling at them again.

"You won’t laugh?" he mumbled under his breath. Eren was always much calmer when he was around Levi. He kept wondering if it’s fear, but that wouldn’t make sense, as the kid didn’t seem to mind being under Levi’s watch. So maybe it was some kind of an admiration. Levi shook his head, waiting for Eren to tell him the truth.

"It’s… kinda scary sleeping all alone in an empty place." he admitted, embarrassed blush creeping on plump cheeks.

Ah, that made a lot of sense. Even if his mother was staying with him until he fell asleep and then went to work, it didn’t change the fact that Eren spent the night in a completely empty, big-ass apartment. A nine-year old kid waking up at midnight and realising that might not be able to fall asleep again… which was explaining Eren’s sleepiness at the moment.

Which was why Levi went to Eren’s mother that evening and asked if she wouldn’t mind him taking their couch for the night. When he saw Eren’s delighted face as he came to check on him before saying goodnight, he decided that the ache from sleeping on the uncomfortable furniture would be worth it.

Eren 13  
Levi 18

Eren’s grades went down when he entered junior high school. His mother went to talk about it with the teacher and was informed that Eren was just ‘not as bright as other children’.

"Bullshit." Levi said out loud when he overheard the story during his mother’s gossip session with Ms Yeager. His mother gasped, ready to chastise him, but he quickly interrupted her.

"Eren’s smart. The teachers just don’t know how to do their job."

From that moment on Eren was always making homework with Levi, always asking for explanation if he didn’t understand something, always beaming when he finally got it. By Christmas his grades matched those of majority of kids in his class. By the end of Levi’s high school Eren was already one of top students.

Levi was sitting by the desk, trying to make the notes from the book spread out on his knees. He tried, but the cheerful sound of carols playing from the kitchen, where his mother and Mikasa were baking cookies, was pretty distracting. He could hear their chatter, the sound of glasses clinking, cupboard’s door opening and closing with a squeak… He let out an exasperated sigh, letting his pen roll freely over his notes.

He wasn’t really concerned about his SATs results. His grades were good enough and he read enough in the free time, that he was pretty sure about them. And there were still months before the exams, he could let himself relax a little…

He heard the apartment’s doorbell ringing and Mikasa opening the door for the guest. That was Eren’s voice, greeting Mikasa, the heavy sound of footsteps leading into the living room.

Even though he knew there were more important things he should be worried about, there was an unpleasant thought nagging him… that he didn’t want to leave Eren. The brat grow on him and his presence by Levi’s side as they were studying was somehow calming. The fact that Eren was about to get into the most annoying, rebelious stage of his teenage years also didn’t sit well with him. Somehow Levi wanted to keep an eye on him, even though his common sense was telling him it’s not his fucking job to take care of a prepubecent kid.

The distracting thoughts stopped the moment he heard the front door opening and closing again. He got out of his room, looking curiously around the apartment.

"I heard Eren was here?" he asked as he entered their big living room, which was joined with the kitchen, where Mikasa was back to helping mom with baking. She looked at Levi with a little bit of mischevious glint in her eyes.

"No, it was Santa. He left you something under the Christmas tree."

Levi furrowed his brow, but obediently went to look under the tree. There were gifts from everyone, he had been eyeing them this afternoon… but a single package wasn’t there before. A little crumpled and nothing like precisely packed gifts that must have been some strange, genetic, Ackerman-thing.

When he unpacked it, first he saw the ballpen. Nothing as fancy as Parker, but quite elegant. Then he noticed the small note underneath it, with a little clumsy cursive and couldn’t supress a smile when he read it.

'I hope this pen will bring you luck on the exams. Thank you for all your help. Merry Christmas, Levi.'

Eren 16  
Levi 21

Levi liked his studies. Liked them enough to grit his teeth and work every summer at the part-time job, pretending to care about his client’s taste in coffee.

This job was the reason Levi’s favourite break wasn’t summer holidays, but Christmas break.

Ok, Eren might have became another reason.

Levi just found it utterly fascinating how the small kid with enormous eyes somehow morphed into this lean boy towering over him. How this face with plump cheeks became more sharp, but didn’t loose their childish charm. How tanned his skin has became and how it was emphasizing Eren’s beautiful, green eyes.

He might have developed an embarrassing, little crush on his young neighbour, whom he’d known for years. It was awkward enough that he decided not to act on those feelings and treat Eren the same way as always, with care. Like an older brother.

The fact that the whole Ackerman family went out for some last moment Christmas shopping and left him with Eren to decorate the apartment wasn’t helping his resolve.

But no, he wouldn’t take out his frustration on Eren. He wouldn’t. Not when the boy came in this afternoon, asking if there was any way he could help, sending Levi this gentle smile he couldn’t say no to, the smile the brat really inherited from his mother.

"Levi, where should I put this?" Eren asked, showing him the box full of older decorations they were no longer using.

"Put them in the wardrobe in the corridor." he said absent-mindedly, adding the last red ribbon to the holly and looking around the living room for the best places to put the green decorations. He stood in front of the door to the room, trying to put the mistletoe over it, but he couldn’t do it without getting on top of a chair.

"Need some help with that?" Eren asked, coming behind him. Before he managed to say anything, the younger boy took the decoration from his hand and quickly tied it, so the mistletoe was hanging right above their heads.

Levi tried to step back as soon as possible, but he was immobilised by Eren’s hand at the small of his back. Suddenly Eren was way too close, looking way too smug.

"Don’t run away, Levi. It’s a tradition." he said it lightly, shrugging. Before Levi managed to protest, Eren’s lips were hovering over his own and he practically froze up, in the last moment closing his eyes. That’s why he more felt than saw Eren’s slight movement and the brush of lips… on his cheek?

Levi opened his eyes, surprised by Eren’s action. The boy was pouting and even under the tan he could see the faint blush.

"Sorry. I didn’t know you would be so repelled by the idea of kissing me." he muttered, trying not to look at Levi, but Levi still managed to see how much hurt there was in the boy’s eyes.

"Eren" he whispered, his fingertips brushing Eren’s jaw to catch his attention. He sighed resigned, cause the kid was still stubornly ignoring him, on the other hand not letting him out of his arms. It felt warm and secure and that might have been what lured Levi into tighetning his hold on Eren’s jaw and actually kissing him. It was just a quick brush of lips, but it still made Levi’s heartbeat accelerate and colour creep on his cheeks.

He wasn’t sure who initiated second kiss. Probably Eren, cause he was always pretty impulsive. All he could remember was the overwhelming warmth, when Eren was holding him in a vice grip, enthusiastically trying to keep up with Levi’s pace, replying to almost shy brushes, timid licks and nipping at the other’s lips. He wanted more, wanted to claim Eren all to himself…

Mikasa’s surprised gasp was what made them immediately jump away from each other. Levi was cursing her internally for coming back home at this very moment.

Eren 19  
Levi 24

Eren was lying on the couch, lazing around, not really paying attention to the Christmas program on TV. He was much more focused on the sound coming from the kitchen and the heavy smell of chocolate in the air.

"I brought it to you, but you won’t get any unless you make some place for me." Levi deadpanned, looking at the boy sprawled out on the whole length of the couch. Eren just smiled cheekily, lifting both hands and glancing at Levi invitingly. Levi stood there for few seconds, but Eren knew that this battle was won, when the older man put the mugs with hot chocolate on the table and obediently slipped into Eren’s arms, lying on top of him.

"You got heavier. Is that Christmas food’s fault?" Eren chuckled, and felt Levi’s pushing an elbow into his belly.

"Ouch, that’s what I get for worrying about you?" he laughed silently, his hands sliding down Levi’s sides and fingertips brushing against the little bit of exposed skin of waistline. "Let me just check…"

"Eren" Levi grumbled, interrupting him. "Stop that." despite the tone of his voice, Levi was pliant in Eren’s hands, not moving much despite the boy’s ministrations. Eren nuzzled Levi’s hair, his fingertips ghosting over exposed strip of skin.

"Levi…" Eren murmured right behind his ear. "Just let me touch you." satisfied with the little shudder he got from Levi, Eren slipped his hands under the sweater, dragging his fingernails lightly all the way along his spine. He was painting the patterns on Levi’s back, happy with the way the man was practically melting in his embrace, hiding his face in the crook of his neck, which made Eren hyperaware of every little gasp Levi made.

"Levi…" he called again, lightly kissing the shell of Levi’s ear. "Lift your head."

He could feel how reluctantly Levi was moving, looking up to see the mistletoe precisely above the couch they were lying on.

"You little shit, when did you put it there?" Levi smiled at him, lifting his hand to trace Eren’s jaw with his fingertips. Eren just shrugged, leaning into Levi’s touch, brushing his lips against the inside of his boyfriend’s palm and kissing it lovingly.

"Let’s say I was feeling a little sentimental." he smiled, hugging Levi tighter before mumbling the next words with embarrassed blush. "Also, any excuse to kiss you is good."

Levi just smiled at him before closing the distance between their lips and practically whispering into their kiss.

"You don’t need an excuse, you know?"


End file.
